What Lies Beneath
Hey slags, a semi-original fic here from your fav. Chapter 1= May 19th, 1903, Somewhere in the English Countryside An elderly gentlemen donning a white lab coat paced around impatiently. Around him were several desks with various pieces of lab equipment. Behind him were various vials filled with different chemicals that were labelled with hazard symbols. "Where is that idiot?" He asked himself as he grew more impatient, his steps becoming more frustrated. There was no sound within the room, except for the weak sounds of various animals coming from a backroom. Outside there was nothing, only the sound of heavy rain slamming against the windows of the mansion. Suddenly a door flew open and in ran a man, he was around the same age as the other elderly gentlemen, his clothes were drenched and he was breathing heavily. "About bloody time, Anthony." The man yelled storming over. Anthony was panting, trying to catch his breath. He weakly held out his arm which was carrying a bag. He snatched it and went over to his desk, not even bothering to ask if he was alright. "Gerald.. I'm pleading again. Please don't do this." Anthony begged in between breaths. "This could end up bei-" "ENOUGH. Enough of your blabbering. If I succeed with this there's no limit to my power. The world will know of Doctor Gerald Southwark." Gerald responded with his harsh tone. Anthony stood, riddled with worry and fear, and watched the Doctor carefully take out the vial within the bag. The chemicals within were black and it was almost as if something was moving inside of it. "W..w-what is that?" Anthony asked, terrified to actually find out. "The future." He ominously replied. On the desk there were now two vials. One was a small dose, the other a larger one. "Bring it out." Southwark demanded. "But.. Gera-" "NOW." He roared. Anthony took a deep breath and brought out the test subject. It squirmed and cried, trying to free itself from Anthony's grip. Anthony just looked away, he couldn't stomach any of this. Gerald picked up the smaller vial, cackling as the black chemicals filled up the syringe in his hand. He then walked over to the test subject and without a second thought plunged the needle deep into it, making sure every last drop of the vial had gone. Gerald stepped backwards and looked at the subject and as Anthony let go it began to violently shake. Suddenly, the subject omitted a bright light and blasted out a huge wave of energy, the wave being so big it shattered windows, smashed everything within the room, blew the doors off, the wave even reached the village, destroying everything it touched, rendering cars useless, blasting the weaker houses and everything in its path. After the light disappeared nothing remained. No Doctor, no Anthony, no village. Just a scared test subject which scurried off into the deeper recesses of the mansion. November 2nd, 2016, Deep Underground Central London - Present Time A young man looked up at the giant grey double doors in front of him. Printed on them were four letters. "N.A.B.C". "The National Alliance of Bioterrorism Combat" He read to himself. "I'm actually here... I aced my exams, I made it..." He looked around at the busy agents and commanders rushing to their positions. Suddenly, a hand was placed on his shoulder. "Kent, right? Cal Kent?" He turned around to see a taller, bulkier man standing over him. It was Captain Walker, Cal had to study with him and several others during the exam period. "Right, sir." He eagerly responded. The Commander began to walk, gesturing Cal to walk with him. "There's no time for proper introductions I'm afraid." He explained, "You've got a mission - and it's a big one." "What? But this is literally my first day." He responded. He was nervous, he may have aced every part of bootcamp but an actual mission on his first day was sending his mind into overdrive. "Look, Kent, I'll level with you." He calmly stated as the two stepped into an elevator. Cal felt his palms get even sweatier, the elevator walls seemed to be closing in as the Commander explained. "You were fast tracked. We needed new, strong agents instantly. You've shown to be a superior agent under intense pressure. We need that with what we're about to face." Walker explained, he took out a device which he showed to Cal. "Remember the Southwark incident from the exam? Well, that's what this is about. Recently there's been talk of strange activity surrounding the mansion. An officer was called to the mansion a few weeks back and found this." The device Cal was holding now projected several images of discarded products that all had the same label. "Isn't that the MLB Pharmaceutical company? Why would they be there?" He asked. "We don't know - That's where you and the others come in. But all we know is that several bioterror incidents in the past always led back to medical reasons. Some did it to improve the effects of drugs on humans to cure diseases, others did it to create super humans - but it warps them. I've seen some things and I'll be damned if I see it happen again." Cal was silent, the device he was holding turned off and Walker took it back. The elevator dinged and the doors opened to a large round table in a dimly lit room. There were a few agents at computers and others walking around dealing with things. Walker led Cal over to a group near the far end of the room. "Cal," He began, "This is Adrian ling." He gestured to a Chinese man, he was tall and lean. He had an air of calm about him. "He was trained as a warrior in China and he's actually from the US Division of the NABC." Cal just nervously smiled, Adrian shot him a cold look. "This is A, she prefers A and we don't actually know her full name." It was another tall, lean looking person, this time a woman with long brown hair and dark lipstick. She was stood against the table staring off into the distance." Cal didn't bother with an introduction. "And this is-" Walker began. "Brad." The final man smiled, offering his hand to Cal who shook it. "Bradford Anderson. Is this the guy?" He asked Walker who nodded. "So I'm your base partner." Brad started, "I won't be with you in the field, instead I'll feed you important mission information through your PDA." A woman approached the group with a tray of gadgets. Adrian, A, and Cal each took a PDA and an ear piece. Also on the table were several other things such as their ID badges and weapons. A picked up a Desert Eagle pistol which had "A" engraved on it in gold. There was another which wasn't engraved which was obviously meant for Cal. There were also two small knives which each of them took. ''"Didn't think guns would be needed instantly..." He thought to himself. His anxiety was rising and he didn't like it. He noticed that Adrian didn't pick up any of the weapons. The same woman returned and handed Adrian a large box, inside was a sword. "He uses a sword?" Cal asked, confused. Brad nodded, "He's trained in close combat so it's natural, he's good with it though so no one questions it." Commander Walker soon broke the conversation between the two. "So now you've all been equipped and briefed." He began. "Adrian, you're going to the Southwark mansion." He nodded and instantly left. "You two." He gestured A and Cal. "You'll be investigating the MLB Labs underneath Framlingham" "Framlingham? Isn't that a small town? What's something like that doing there?" Cal asked. "Small towns are usually chosen for this because of their irrelevance." A answered, surprising Cal who genuinely didn't think she'd speak. "She's right." Walker assured. "Anyway, go there, be quiet, and gather as much information as you can. Anderson will send you a map of the labs, make sure you're undetected." Cal and A nodded and were led off to a chopper. October 31st, Framlingham Three men stood in a dark room, the only light source being the monitor in front of them, the monitor showed the scientists and office workers in the labs going about their daily jobs. It was a security camera. "Do it." One of the men said. Suddenly gas was released into every room of the lab. The three men stood and watched as people struggled to breathe and panicked at the locked doors, eventually they passed out and the lab was silent... no movements, no noise, just pure silence. "Release the seals." The same man commanded. The red lights indicating that the doors were locked turned green, opening them. The three then gathered what they needed to from the room they were in and left on a chopper labelled "MLB". It was now nightfall. A lone man was walking through the empty streets with his dog. "You're fine Phil, it's just a bat." He said to himself to calm down. He could see someone in the distance stumbling. "Halloween." He rolled his eyes at the obvious drunk man. Soon the man began to stumble towards him and fell. Inclined to help - Phil grabbed his dog, who was reluctant, and rushed over. He was just about to help the man up when he sprung to life and lunged up. His eyes were milky white, his skin an off grey and he had a snarl that wasn't human in the slightest. He stared at Phil as if he was... well, food. What happened next Phil didn't see coming. He launched himself at Phil, mouth open and slammed his jaw down on Phil's neck, ripping the flesh from his bone, blood spurted out, painting the pavement a deep red. Phil couldn't even scream he was that shocked, he pushed the man off him and began to escape to his home. As he fell through his front door his wife let out a scream. "Phil.. Phil, honey, what happened?" She cried as she knelt down beside his now lifeless body. The house was silent. All that was heard were the sobs of his wife. As she got up to call the emergency services Phil followed. She turned around, surprised to see him standing, as she ran over to him she felt an intense burning pain, before she could even register what happened her arm had several bite marks and she was soon on the floor, covered in blood, devoured by her own husband. The town was alive with shrieks and terror.. and not because it was Halloween. November 2nd, 2016, Deep Underground Central London - Present Time Cal and A made their way to an airfield on the outskirts of London. Commander Walker was already waiting and wished the two well on their mission. Cal thanked him whilst A just boarded. The chopper wasn't really a chopper, however. It was more of a jet. Cal was in awe, he'd never even been first class on a regular plane nevermind on a private jet. He took his seat and took a deep breath. He looked out the window and tried to remain calm. He noticed A sat alone and decided to at least make nice with his field partner. "Hey." He nervously said with a smile, he took a seat opposite her. She looked at him, or rather, straight through him. "S-So.. where are you from?" Cal asked, trying anything to get even the smallest response from her. After all, this was his partner, if he gets in trouble he needed to trust her. But again there wasn't a response. "I suppose you went through a lot of training to become an elite agent.." He said again, but once again, there wasn't a reply. Just a stare. Her eyes eventually left him and went back to staring out the window. "Well, you know what, I tried." Cal stated, getting up and going back to his original seat. A stared out the window, her usual cold, stone-like expression was gone and she was just left with a concerned look. As Cal sat back down he contacted Anderson. "So hey, what's the deal with A?" He asked. "Oh well, no one knows really. A few years ago she just appeared at the agency. Walker says he remembers testing her but he doesn't even believe that himself. She's a mystery. But she's good at what she does." "I guess... it's just awkward having to work with someone like her. I mean, if she's quiet and reserved that's okay, but I've only heard a few words from her. What if I get into trouble and need help? Can I count on her?" Cal asked, his anxiety rising and showing in his voice. "Well... you're actually her first partner. She's usually a solo agent but this time she was paired up. I guess Walker thought it might encourage her to open up or something... Anyway, enough about that. I'm sending you some data. It's everything we know on the Southwark case. Everything about this is related, so just study it and become familiar with the case. I'm out." Cal put his ear piece on the table and began reading his PDA. He was deep into the journal entries of various people in the village who spoke about fearing Gerald Southwark. However, an entry from Anthony Watt, believed to be his closest friend, made him see Southwark in a different light. He spoke of him in such a high regard. Praising his intelligence and scientific creativity. "So he was a mad scientist basically." Cal told himself out loud. He began swiping on his PDA to read the MLB data. He found out that the company was ran by someone called Oscar Temple who went into the pharmaceutical business because of his daughter who died from an unknown disease when she was young. "Poor bastard.." Cal said. He read that Oscar's intelligence was unmatched by any of his peers when growing up and that he was a very creative boy and that before going into medicine he wanted to be a lab scientist. Cal spent the rest of the plane ride delving deep into the data. It wasn't long before the plane dropped them off on the outskirts of town. He and A were now stood overlooking the town. They knew the lab entrance was over at the other side of town in a modern looking building. "Well, let's go." He said to A who just followed with that same dead expression. They walked through some of the streets, Cal noticed how eerily quiet it was. A made a mental note too, they were told it was a decently sized town so to expect people. "Oh. There's someone." Cal said, pointing out the figure in the distance. "HEY." Cal yelled, the figure slowly turned around and began moving towards them. "Why is he moving so slow.. and is he limping?" Cal asked A who just kept staring at the man. Cal walked over to meet him. "Hey, do you kno-" He was cut off mid sentence however by an attempted bite. Cal snatched his arm back and moved backwards. "Okay.. n-now, stay where you are." Cal warned the man who kept moving. "I s-said stay back!" He yelled, as he moved backwards he tripped over and landed on his back, with the civilian now on top of him attempting to bite. Cal shrieked and tried to push him off, but he was too heavy and wild. He was biting the air in a frenzy. A finally jumped into action and ran over, slamming her foot into the man's chest and helping Cal up. She took out her pistol and aimed it at the man. "Don't come any closer." She warned. Ignoring her warnings he persisted, pushing his forehead into the barrel of her gun, A used all of her force to make sure he didn't come closer. "I said stay back." She pushed her gun forward, knocking him backwards. But again he came, biting and snarling towards her. Cal was stood, frozen. This was far worse than anything he imagined. He felt his anxiety taking over, not just a small attack but his body was shutting down. He squatted on the ground, putting his head into his arms. A warned the man again, and this time she had no choice. She fired a shot into his leg, the shot echoed around the estate, birds flew from the trees in fright. Cal shot up in panic and saw that the man was on his knees, surrounded by blood, but he rose to his feet and kept coming, as if there wasn't a bullet in his leg at all. "What the.." Cal murmured, he clocked A's expression, even she was visibly worried. She fired again into his other leg and the same thing happened. This time she wasn't playing, she noted a child's tire swing in the garden next to them. "Cal, cut that rope and give it to me." She ordered. Cal stood, frozen again. "DO IT." She yelled again, snapping Cal out of it. As he ran over to do it she began holding the man off. She repeatedly kicked him in the chest until he was down. He rose again and grabbed her arm, before he could take a bite however Cal yelled at her to move and he threw the tire at the man, knocking him to the ground. In a swift move A grabbed the rope and tied the tire to the man's back so he was stuck in a turtle position. She was left panting, exhausted from one combat experience. Cal was too, but he was still having regular anxiety attacks. "I better tell HQ." A said as she contacted them. Cal just stared at the man, he remembered something he learned in his training which was to take pictures of everything. So he did. "You were attacked? Did you blow your cover?" Anderson asked. "No, it was from one civilian." She replied. "Well he was probably drunk. Don't interact with the civilians." "That's the thing though, Brad." Cal interrupted, "There aren't any. We've come a few miles into the town and there wasn't anyone. Cars were left abandoned, doors were open - something isn't right. That man was like an animal. He was trying to bite us. And take a look at this." Cal sent over the image of the man. Whilst this happened A checked the blood on the pavement. "...No... that's not possible.." She said to herself. "The blood's congealing." "But how can that happen. That doesn't happen until after you're dead." Cal said squinting his eyes in confusion. "Look, I'll check in with the Commander about this, for now, just stick to your mission. I'm out" A and Cal just stood there, looking at the struggling man and then the blood. Nothing made sense. How can someone take two shots in the legs and be able to stand as if nothing was happening? How can the blood start to congeal if the person is alive? Their worries and doubts were interrupted by A noticing something. "That window." She said looking over to the house next to them, "The curtain moved." She sprung into action and ran towards the door, Cal obviously had to follow. As they approached the door they noticed it was open. They crept in, the kitchen was a mess. There was blood on the floor which trailed upstairs. A and Cal both took out their weapons. "...A, before we go any further.. Can I just say." Cal started, "Thank you for helping me out there." "There's no need for thanks, we're partners. I can't deal with blood on my hands." She replied, it was supposed to sound heartfelt but yet there was zero emotion behind it. "I know.. I just thought that since you're quiet and don't talk about your pa-" "Look. Just because I'm not bubbly and fun it doesn't mean I want my partner to die or to get injured. I don't talk about my past because it's my own business." She snapped. "I don't owe anyone an explanation." "I know... I just.." Cal started, but he could feel how annoyed she was so he stopped talking. The tension was heavy, the silence was even heavier. But suddenly a thud from upstairs broke it. "Hear that?" A asked, Cal nodded and the two ran upstairs, the trail of blood was leading to where the noise came from. A slowly opened the door where the trail was leading to. It was a bathroom and in there was a young girl rooting through a medicine cabinet. "Don't hurt me!" She cried, she was holding her arm which was bleeding badly. Various medicine bottles littered the floor. The girl was visibly terrified, her dress was dirty and torn, she looked as if she had been in a fight. "Oh my god, what happened?" Cal asked, rushing over to her, she moved back in panic. He changed his attitude and knelt down. She was very young, only around 8 or 9. "My daddy... I came downstairs this morning and my mummy was on the floor and I asked and he- he.." Her story was cut off by sobs. She held out her arm and showed them the wound. The flesh had been torn from her arm. Cal gagged at the sight of it. A took over and began wrapping her arm in a bandage she found in the cabinet. "Who are you?" She asked the two, A stayed silent but Cal explained that they were here to help. "So what's your name?" Cal asked. The young girl was hesitant but looked at Cal. "I'm.. Eve." "That's a pretty name." He smiled at her, she let out a small smile herself. "Cal... A, come in." Anderson asked. "We're here." Cal said, touching his ear piece. "I have the Commander here with me. He's got something to tell you." "Go on." "In the 70s there was an isolated incident in a small town - people began attacking each other. Eating each other. They couldn't be stopped. They were like animals." "So, they were like cannibals?" Cal asked. "In a sense. But it was different.. when one person was bit and eventually died from blood loss. They would come back. Their cells were reanimated." "Wait, you mean like.. Zombies?" Cal asked, looking at A, who looked at Eve who was looking down at her wound, but unknowing of the conversation going on. "Exactly. They have the most basic of needs, the need to feed. Once bitten an individual has anywhere from a few minutes to hours before they reanimate and become one of them." The Commander explained. "So.. how do we stop them? Can it be reversed? What do we do if we're bit?" Cal asked, the panic was now dripping from his voice. "Dial it back, Kent, y-" "Dial it BACK? We're in the middle of a pandemic and you're telling ME to calm down?" Cal snapped. "Watch it! Now, to stop them you need to destroy the brain. That's the only way. As for reversing it, not yet. Also a bitten individual should be avoided at all costs." Cal and A looked at each other, and then at Eve. "Am I sick?" She asked. XOXO END OF CHAPTER ONE XOXO |-| Chapter 2=